Rosella
"This will be your new room," Elissa, an elderly woman announced as she ushered me inside a room.
After the king angrily left the car because I had disrespected him, in his own words, Elissa led me to my new room. When she first introduced herself as the head of the slaves, I wondered who Madam Ruth was and why she had hurt me so badly.
I would find out about that soon and make her regret treating me like that.
The room was beautiful, outfitted with everything someone of my status might need. The floors were black marble, something I never thought I would see again, but the Alpha king had made it happen because I had sold my soul to him and become his sex slave.
The walls were covered with black wallpaper, and the symbol of the werewolves was in the center of each panel.
"What does this mean?" I asked Elissa, running my finger over the emblem.
"That is the symbol of the werewolves, but that is the king's wolf," she explained.
I scoffed at the mention of Damian and wondered what he hoped to achieve by adding his wolf to the wallpaper in my room.
No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't escape him because he was everywhere. After all, this was his mansion.
I found it ridiculous, but there was nothing I could do about it unless I killed him later, which I planned to.
I turned from the walls and walked toward the bed. It was a Queen-sized bed, unlike the bunk beds at the sex school where two humans had to share one. In the werewolf world, everything came with luxury, and I hated it because humans didn't have that privilege.
When I sat on the bed, I placed my hand on the thick, heavy covers and rubbed them gently. It reminded me of my mother and how she had died.
Because of a lack of resources like thick blankets and heaters, she died from a cold. Every time I remembered how she had shivered until her last breath, I cursed the werewolves for her death.
She had suffered from pneumonia, a disease that could have been treated if only the Royal Hospital had accepted her and if only the humans didn't lack basic amenities.
"Mum, I am going to end this," I muttered as I hugged the covers.
"If you are done looking around, Lady Rosella, let us take a look at your closet," Elissa said, pointing to the left side of the room where the closet was located.
I nodded and stood up. When we reached the closest, I frowned at the dresses. They were neatly arranged, each glittering like gold.
I counted my fingers, trying to imagine how expensive they must be.
Why was he going to such lengths to please me? I wondered. I couldn't figure out why he would do everything to make me like him. Even though I accepted his offer, I still hated him, and he knew this.
There was no way I was ever going to like a monster.
"I am going to wear all these dresses?" I asked Elissa, who nodded in response.
"You have gained a title. You are now a Lady. Although your rank is still low, you belong to the king's harem," she said.
"Harem? He has a harem?" I shouldn't have been surprised, but hearing it made me wonder why he had made me his sex slave when he already had other women.
He could have chosen anyone to pleasure him, so why me? "How many women are in his harem?" I asked.
Elissa furrowed her brows, probably wondering why I asked. I couldn't even fathom why I had, but for some reason, I was jealous. "I just need to know who the concubines are so we can get along," I added with a fake smile.
She cleared her throat before she started speaking. "There is little to say about the women in the king's harem. They have been reduced to five, and the only ones he truly cares about are you and the other lady he bought from the auction house."
"Danielle?" I exclaimed. "Why would he make Danielle his concubine?" Everyone knew Danielle as the sex goddess from the sex school who had slept with almost everyone.
When I first saw her at the mansion with Damian, I thought he would have gotten rid of her, but surprisingly, he must have enjoyed her service enough to make her a Lady like me.
"If you are done, Lady Rosella, you must prepare for tonight. The king is coming to claim you," she announced, and I didn't know how to react.
Was I supposed to scream out of excitement or horror?
"He is coming here? But…" I said, instead of remembering what had happened just a few hours ago.
I had wanted him badly then, and he made me feel like a fool. And all he could say was that I had disrespected him.
What a hypocrite.
"You are his new concubine. According to werewolf tradition, you must warm his bed every night, and…"
"Every night?" I scoffed.
How could he expect me to do this every night when I was not a sex machine?
"What the hell?" I shouted. "There is no way I will ever warm his bed every night."
"Speech, Lady Rosella. As a Lady, you should learn how to speak properly. Once favored by the king, you may become his Noble Consort."
"I don't want any of that!" I yelled.
"People would kill to be in your position," her voice was respectful but condescending. "If you continue to act this way, I might have to inform the king about your attitude." She turned me and grabbed my shoulders. "Will you comply or not?"
"What the hell are you doing?" I shouted as she tore my dress, exposing me. "I said, What are you doing?"
"Giving you a second chance to reconsider your position!" she yelled and slapped me.
My eyes widened in shock at her attitude. I gasped as my face whipped to the other side. "What the hell are you doing?"
She grabbed my dress tighter and pulled me closer to herself. " Humans suffer, and if you are lucky, you rise to a status in the werewolf world. If you are unlucky, you die like the others, but have a chance to be so close to the king, so I wonder why you are complaining."
"I will never sell myself for a better life!" I confessed, speaking the truth.
Elissa laughed and slapped my back, and I winced in pain, ready to scream at her, but she cut me off. "Use your chance wisely, Rosella." When I tried to speak, she slapped my back again.
"Are you insane! Why do you keep slapping me?"
"I am letting you know the suffering you could face in the real world," she said, letting go of my dress. Then she walked in front of me. "I have seen the world, little girl, before you were born. It is not as pleasant as it seems."
I trembled as she circled me. I was shaking with fear. When she stood before me again, I jumped, expecting another strike. Instead, she gently groped my left breast. "You have a nice body, little human. If pleasuring the king…" she removed her hand, "…would give you the life you want, then take it!" She folded her arms and stared into my eyes. "Take that chance for a better life and stop worrying about other things."
"I will never stop thinking about how my parents died!" I grabbed my hair and screamed. "I will never forgive the king for what he did! He ruined human lives," I sobbed. "He made children orphans and enslaved humans. I will never…"
"Hush," Elissa placed a hand over my mouth. She grabbed my hand and led me to the full-length mirror beside the dresses. "If you want revenge on the werewolves, start by becoming powerful and taking them down one by one," she whispered. "You are a beautiful woman. It should not be a problem for you to achieve that."
"Why are you helping me?" I asked.
"Helping you?" She scoffed and shook her head. "I am not helping you, little girl. I am telling you what you must do to survive this cruel world and get what you desire." She placed a hand on my shoulder. "One piece of advice: follow your heart in whatever you wish for."
"Anything I wish for?" I placed my hand on the mirror, staring at my reflection. "I will become strong and powerful, then burn them all to the ground," I declared.